Blogs - The Point

August 11, 2011

Love and the Internet

A new South Korea law forbids teenagers from playing online games after midnight. Why? Because too many South Korean youths are addicted to these games, and are neglecting themselves, and becoming angry and anti-social.

These restrictions are helpful, as any type of Internet addiction can be self-destructive. But many experts recognize that games themselves are not the real problem. The real problem in Korea is often performance-driven systems of family and education, and a culture that sacrifices relationships to a particular type of success. That pressure drives students to seek escape – for many in a virtual world they become addicted to.

Teens reflect the image of God, who is relational and designed them to love and be loved in a community, first and foremost with their families. Without that, they’ll turn to all sorts of things for satisfaction, worshiping those things instead of their Maker. And virtual reality is no substitute for the real thing.